OSUN ELECTION: WHY I REFUSED DANGOTE ‘S ADVICE, SAYS DAVIDO

David Adeleke, aka Davido

Aliko Dangote

Global award-winning afrobeats superstar David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has made a startling revelation about the behind-the-scenes drama surrounding the August 15 Osun State governorship election, claiming that Senate President Godswill Akpabio and billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote contacted him over his social media posts during the tense poll.

Davido made the disclosure in an interview with News Central TV on Tuesday, August 18, while recounting what he described as intense pressure and attempts by powerful figures to influence his online coverage of the election.

The singer said he refused to delete his posts despite the high-profile calls, insisting that he would continue posting until the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) formally announced the result.

According to Davido, the calls came as he and his team were monitoring events across the state.

He said he was told that the Senate President was attempting to reach the collation centre and that he was subsequently contacted and asked to take down some of his posts.

Davido claimed that Dangote also personally called him, but said he politely rejected the billionaire’s appeal.

The singer said he told Dangote that he would not delete anything until INEC made its official announcement.

The revelation adds another dramatic layer to an already fiercely contested election that had been preceded by accusations, counter-accusations and fears of electoral manipulation.

Davido, who openly campaigned for his uncle, Governor Ademola Adeleke, had been one of the most vocal celebrity figures in the run-up to the election.

He was appointed head of youth mobilisation for Adeleke’s re-election campaign and had repeatedly vowed to be on the ground to monitor the process and resist any attempt to manipulate the votes.

In June, Davido warned that anybody attempting to rig the election would face strong resistance, saying he would be physically present to defend the votes.

He also urged political opponents to settle their differences through ballot papers rather than violence.

His involvement became even more controversial in the days leading to the election, with the singer publicly calling out politicians he believed could interfere in the process.

At one point, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, who chaired the APC’s campaign council for the Osun election, responded to Davido’s comments by telling the singer to prepare to sign his uncle up as a dancer if Adeleke lost the election.

But the biggest revelation from Davido’s interview was his claim that huge amounts of money were allegedly deployed during the election.

The singer claimed he had received information from an insider indicating that more than N110 billion was brought into Osun in an alleged attempt to influence the outcome of the poll.

Davido said the amount of cash allegedly deployed shocked him and warned that allowing money and violence to determine elections would create a dangerous precedent for Nigeria.

He maintained that his family’s campaign did not distribute money to voters on election day, claiming that their strategy was instead to rely on voters to collect whatever inducements they were offered but still vote according to their conscience.

According to him, the situation became so tense that ordinary Osun residents allegedly confronted people attempting to interfere with ballot materials.

The singer’s comments, however, remain allegations from his account of events.

There is no independent evidence cited in the interview to substantiate his claim that N110 billion was brought into Osun or that Akpabio and Dangote asked him to delete his posts.

The money allegation is particularly significant because vote buying had already been identified as a major concern ahead of the election.

Civil society groups and election observers had warned that monetary inducement could undermine the credibility of the Osun poll.

Davido also used the interview to frame Adeleke’s victory as evidence that grassroots support could overcome political influence and financial power.

He argued that his uncle’s success should serve as a lesson to politicians, saying leaders who stand with the people would eventually receive the people’s support at the ballot box.

The 2026 election was a particularly important contest for the Adeleke family.

Governor Ademola Adeleke was seeking a second term after defeating the then-incumbent APC governor, Gboyega Oyetola, in the 2022 election by 403,371 votes to 375,027.